Swimming pool equipment carrying case

ABSTRACT

A carrying case for swimming pool maintenance equipment comprising an open-topped compartmentalized box, each compartment being shaped to receive a relatively specific item or items of swimming pool equipment such that the center of gravity of the case when loaded is substantially fixed, and a handle mounted generally above the center of gravity. One of the compartments has a rack therein to hold tools above the bottom of the compartment and clear of any standing water inadvertently admitted therein, and several sockets are mounted on generally external portions of the case to receive brush handles such that the brushes do not drip water into the case.

United States Patent [191 Spooner 1 SWIMMING POOL EQUIPMENT CARRYING CASE [76] Inventor: Edward Spooner, 5431 Bahia Ln.,

La Jolla, Calif. 92037 [22] Filed: Apr. 23, I973 [21] Appl. No.: 353,541

[52] US. Cl. 220/20; 206/203; 206/229; 206/373; 21 1/60 T; 211/66; 224/5 A; 224/45 [51] Int. Cl. B650! l/36 [58] Field of Search 220/20-22,

220/94 A; 206/203, 207, 209, 229, 230, 361, 362,152, 15.3, 372, 373; 224/5 A, 26 R, 45 R, 45 Q, 46 R, 48 R, 46 T; 15/146, 257.2, 258; 211/60 T, 65, 66', 206/l.7, 1.8

[ June 3, 1975 Primary Examiner-William 1. Price Assistant ExaminerStephen Marcus Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Ralph S. Branscomb 5 7 ABSTRACT A carrying case for swinning pool maintenance equipment comprising an open-topped compartmentalized box, each compartment being shaped to receive a relatively specific item or items of swimming pool equipment such that the center of gravity of the case when loaded is substantially fixed, and a handle mounted generally above the center of gravity. One of the compartments has a rack therein to hold tools above the bottom of the compartment and clear of any standing water inadvertently admitted therein, and several sockets are mounted on generally external portions of the case to receive brush handles such that the brushes do not drip water into the case.

1 Claim, 4 Drawing Figures BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The popularity of swimming pools, and especially private residential pools, has been and still is on the increase in the United States. Along with the growth of the swimming pool industry to meet the increased demand, secondary industries, such as the swimming pool maintenance business, have developed and are flourishing.

In the maintenance of swimming pools, a variety of specialized equipment items must be used, including a skimmer net, chlorine and other chemicals, a chemical testing kit, a vacuum cleaner and several brushes, as well as screwdrivers, pliers and other conventional tools.

At present, although specialized carrying cases have been provided for cleaning articles (e.g. U.S. Pat. Nos: 2,450,172, 2,649,606, 3,600,740), carpenters tools (see U.S. Pat. No. 2,740,5l7), and plumbing tools (U.S. Pat. No. 3,618,749), among others, no such carrying case has been developed for swimming pool maintenance equipment.

As a result, swimming pool equipment items must either be lugged to and around the pool in ones arms or in a case not designed for the purpose. In the latter situation several problems are inherent. First, the equipment items will not likely fit into a compartmentalized case, and in an undivided case, certain of the equipment items, such as gallon chorine containers, being much heavier than others, will imbalance the case, causing all the equipment to slide to one end and perhaps fall out of the case. Second, due to the nature of swimming pool maintenance, some quantity of water will inevitably be splashed or dripped into the case, and will wet and cause to rust any tools lying in a puddle in the bottom of the case. In addition, items which are used in the water, such as brushes, skimmers and vacuum attachments, will carry with them certain amounts of water when returned to the case, creating a watery mess and further threat to items in the case which are suseptible to deterioration from exposure to water.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The carrying case disclosed and claimed herein includes a box having compartments dimensioned to hold specific items of swimming pool equipment such that the case is balanced with respect to a handle mounted generally centrally and above the box. Several tubular sockets are mounted on external portions of the case, one being mounted horizontally over the handle and one or more are mounted on the side of the box.

The sockets receive the handles of the various brushes used in pool maintenance and are so oriented that the water-laden bristle portions extend externally of the box to prevent the dripping of water into the box. A special compartment is provided with a rack for everyday tools, and compartments designed to contain certain other items, such as a skimmer and vacuum attachment, which may at times be carried in the case when wet, are water-tight to prevent the flow of accumulated water into other compartments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the carrying case, FIG. 2 is a top plan view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The carrying case includes a four-sided box 10 having a bottom 12 which may be solid or have drain holes therein. The box is divided into a plurality of individual compartments by dividers 14 and a central wall 16 which extends the substantial length of the box and considerably above the level of the top of the box. The purpose of the height of the central wall is both to provide a definite division between the two divided sides of the box to maintain this separation in case oversized tools are carried, and to provide a finger access on handle opening 20 which is well above the center of gravity of the case when loaded, thereby enhancing the stability of the case when it is carried. The dividers l4 and the walls of the box are fairly low to allow easy access to the items in the compartments.

Each of the compartments of the box is dimensioned to carry specific items, or types of items, which are often used for pool maintenance. The disposition of the compartments is such that when each compartment contains the proper item or items, the carrying case is substantially bananced around the hand grip 20 so that tilting during use is minimized.

Compartment 22 is intend to be used for a bottle of chlorine, and compartment 24, dimensioned to hold other assorted chemicals, is disposed diagonally in the box from the chlorine, so that when loaded, the carrying case will be balanced, the chlorine weighing roughly the same as the other chemicals. The remaining compartments are dimensioned to receive items that are fairly light in weight, compartments 26, 28, 30 and 32 containing a bottle of tile cleaner, miscellaneous hand tools and chemical tests sets, a skimmer net 35 and a vacuum cleaner fitting, respectively.

A tool rack 34, which is preferably a horizontally disposed panel, is mounted in the compartment 28 some distance above the bottom of the box. The panel has several peripheral openings 36 which receive various chemical tests sets 38, and a plurality of holes 40 into which are inserted small hand tools such as a screwdriver 42, pliers, or the such items which are used in maintenance. The rack secures the tools and also supports them above the bottom of the box. so that the tools, many of which will be susceptible to rusting, will not rest in standing water inadvertently dripped into the compartment. To prevent seepage of water into the tool compartment, the side are made water-tight with respect to the surrounding compartments. The bottom and the other compartments are also preferably provided with sealed walls to prevent dangerous mixing of chemicals, such as chlorine and hydrochloric acid, and to prevent escape of chemicals onto the pool deck.

Several types of brushes are generally used to clean swimming pools, and to secure the brushes to the case, and also prevent the possibility of water-laden bristle portions dripping into the box, a plurality of hollow cylindrical portions or tubes are provided on external portions of the case which hold the brush handles such that the bristle portions overhang the sides of the box and the brushes do not extend such as to hamper the movements of one carrying the case.

A long tube 44 is secured to and extends along the top of the central wall 16 to conveniently hold the longhandled brush 46, and two or more short socket-like tubes 48 having enclosed bottoms are vertically mounted on side portions of the box to hold brushes such as the removeable head for an extra long-handled pool cleaning brush.

The carrying case can be constructed of a variety of different materials, but honeycomb plastic is preferred. Regardless of the material, the carrying case can be manufactured inexpensively, and will find wide markets among those who are frequently engaged in swim ming pool maintenance.

I claim:

1. A carrying case adapted for swimming pool maintenance equipment including equipment items having simple cylindrical handles, said case comprising:

a. a box having two sides, two ends, a bottom and being open at the top;

b. means dividing the interior of the box into opentopped compartments, each compartment being shaped and dimensioned to receive a specific item of swimming pool maintenance equipment;

c. one of said compartments being elongated, defined in part by one of said ends, and extending the full length thereof to receive a skimmer net;

d. said dividing means including a central partition wall parallel to said sides and extending vertically from said bottom to well above said sides, ends and dividing means and extending from adjacent said elongated compartment to the end remote therefrom to effectively prevent spillover of equipment items from one side of the case to the other;

c. said partition wall having a handgrip opening near the top thereof;

f. said dividing means defining two substantially equal-sized chemical compartments diagonally disposed relative to one another in said box whereby said box is substantially balanced in use;

g. one of said compartments having a tray well above h. a hollow open-ended cylinder mounted along the upper edge of said partition wall and extending the substantial length thereof for receiving an elongated brush handle; and

'. a plurality of hollow vertical cylindrical sockets mounted on the exterior of said box and being open at both ends whereby elongate-handled brushes may be carried therein regardless of handle length. 

1. A carrying case adapted for swimming pool maintenance equipment including equipment items having simple cylindrical handles, said case comprising: a. a box having two sides, two ends, a bottom and being open at the top; b. means dividing the interior of the box into open-topped compartments, each compartment being shaped and dimensioned to receive a specific item of swimming pool maintenance equipment; c. one of said compartments being elongated, defined in part by one of said ends, and extending the full length thereof to receive a skimmer net; d. said dividing means including a central partition wall parallel to said sides and extending vertically from said bottom to well above said sides, ends and dividing means and extending from adjacent said elongated compartment to the end remote therefrom to effectively prevent spillover of equipment items from one side of the case to the other; e. said partition wall having a handgrip opening near the top thereof; f. said dividing means defining two substantially equal-sized chemical compartments diagonally disposed relative to one another in said box whereby said box is substantially balanced in use; g. one of said compartments having a tray well above said bottom and recessed below the upper edges of said dividing means, sides and ends and having apertures therethrough for holding tools spaced from said bottom and thus retained in dry condition and out of contact with any water inadvertantly admitted into the carrying case; h. a hollow open-ended cylinder mounted along the upper edge of said partition wall and extending the substantial length thereof for receiving an elongated brush handle; and i. a plurality of hollow vertical cylindrical sockets mounted on the exterior of said box and being open at both ends whereby elongate-handled brushes may be carried therein regardless of handle length. 